Valley of Flowers (Bharat Van)

The Valley of Flowers spreads along the Narmada's banks near the statue: a long ribbon of curated flowerbeds, lawns, themed gardens and sculpture-dotted walks, planted at a scale that only makes sense next to a 182-metre statue. It is a landscaped showpiece rather than a wild meadow: expect seasonal bedding in bold blocks of colour, topiary, selfie installations and buggy routes rather than trails.

As a break between the campus's ticketed headliners it works well: the river keeps a breeze moving, the statue looms over the treeline for the signature photo, and children can run without a queue in sight. Bloom quality tracks the cool season: November to February is the peak, with fresh planting after the monsoon; by late spring the beds thin out.

Go golden-hour if you can: the statue picks up warm light from across the river and the crowds thin as tour buses rotate to the laser show.